Adrenaline Elite Shootout Recap

Sonoma, CA. — The Adrenaline Elite Shootout has come to an end and the action surely matched and surpassed the anticipation that was brewing prior to the event.

LaxDawgs Brown, out of San Diego, came away with what some would call an unlikely title run besting the AZ Burn 6-3 in the finals. Sunday’s actions provided for three rounds of playoffs and in some ways was really a test to the toughness of each team. The Warrior playoff bracket consisted of the top eight teams and was certainly the highlight of a hard fought and well played weekend all around.

Having played five seeding games and having some players in the All-Star game before the playoffs even started was a reason for fatigue among players across all teams, but the mental toughness aspect that the LaxDawgs showed was impressive and certainly a contributing factor for their run towards a title.

“We all knew everyone was in the same boat, having played a bunch of games and having to now strap up for the playoffs. Our guys dug deep and for us it was more mental than physical,’ says Dan Meehan, Head Coach for LaxDawgs Brown. ‘We had to take a 4th quarter mentality into Sunday’s playoff games and realize that although we could have found excuses to lose, we didn’t accept that and gutted it out.”

The ‘Dawgs’ were certainly given with enough reason to lose hope, as they were down to a very talented Zip-It (Las Vegas, NV) in the first round of the playoffs. Midway through the second half, with no timeouts allotted, Meehan’s squad began to shift the momentum through “ground balls and outstanding goalie play” and eventually evened the score at 7-7 with under a minute to go. Dakota Rohlin scored in the overtime frame to complete the run of 5 unanswered goals and secure the victory and advance.

The underlying story of Sunday was the parody displayed by the top 8 playoff teams. Both the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds were upset in the first round, and the No. 3 seed, AZ Burn, lost to the LaxDawgs Brown in the finals. Brady’s Bunch, the overall No. 1 seed in the tournament, was upset in the first round by the OC Kings. The Kings played the last five minutes holding onto a one goal lead and staying mostly in their defensive zone, outside of a short man up they had.

“If I were to single out any individual players on our squad it would not be fair to these guys as a team. From the defensive middies, to the faceoff guys, and goalies to our attack, everyone stepped up their intensity to match the stage of the game and delivered a terrific performance,” said Xander Ritz, Club Director for the OC Kings. “Certainly would have liked two more wins after that, but coming out strong and taking that game was great for our program and I couldn’t be prouder of our players.”

The Kings were then bested by the eventual Champion LaxDawgs Brown in the semi’s 7-6, another close one for both squads but the Kings couldn’t do enough to get past that round.

The No. 2 seed Golden State Titans were also taken down in the first round. RC Elite, out of San Diego, came out firing Sunday morning and poured in 13 goals to Golden State’s 7. Jon Zissi, Head Coach for RC Elite, pointed out how well his offense can produce when working together. “When our guys are working as a unit and firing on all cylinders, we are hard to stop. That was a very good Golden State Team but I am not sure that anyone else would have don’t better stopping us in that game”. RC would then face AZ Burn, who beat the LA Lazers 7-2 in the first round, in the final four but lost 7-5.

The finals saw a defensively strong matchup with some of the best goalies of the weekend. Russell Bartle, the net minder for the AZ Burn, was an All Star and arguably the best goaltender in attendance this weekend. “Russell makes it look easy sometimes, the way he smoothly saves a ball and turn it into a fast break the other way. His calmness and leadership in cage is impressive and he has a bright future in front of him,” says Chris Malone, AZ Burn Club Director and coach. Dan Meehan, while focusing on the fact that this was a complete team win, notes he “would be remiss not to mention the play of his goalies, Reis Stanley and Evan Powell. The two of them were outstanding and a great cornerstone for both the team and our defense.”

Tied 2-2 at the half, the ‘Dawgs’ came out and dominated a tough, scrappy second frame. They would go up 4-3 and AZ would pull within one at 4-3 but then the LaxDawgs pulled away and held on for the victory.

“I won’t tell you we were the most talented team, and maybe didn’t have the high profile players that others did,” Meehan said, “but we played as a team from start to finish and I am very happy with our guys, great win for the whole team.”

The Elite Shootout will now give way to the HS, MS, and Youth Shootout’s over the course of the next two weekends.